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Amia Augsburger writes about the killing of Cannon Hinnant. The 5-year-old boy was riding his bike outside, when he was shot dead. His killer is thought to be neighbour Darius Sessoms, who has since been charged with first degree murder. The tragedy has come as a shock to all, and memorial events are now being organised. Police are yet to reveal a motive, and his parents are pursuing the death penalty.
Cannon Hinnant was shot dead on Sunday the 16th of August, having returned from church with his family. The suspect, Darius Sessom, is believed to have shot the five year old in the head. Cannon was rushed to the Wilson Medical Centre, where he was pronounced dead.
Just the night before, his father, Austin Hinnant, had invited Sessoms to have a beer together on his front-porch. They have been neighbours for eight years. Hinnant noticed that evening that Sessoms was “sitting in his car, like he had a lot on his mind”, so he invited him over for a drink. He explained, “I was just trying to do something nice.”
Cannon was days shy from beginning kindergarten, and like a young lad relishing these summer evenings, he was practising cycling around his front garden. His older sisters, seven and eight, had also been playing together. “Everybody just loved Cannon," his father told the WRAL. His father was inside at the time when he heard the shot fired. Hinnant told CNN afilliate WRAL that “The first thing that went through my mind was that maybe he just fell off his bike." He continued, "The closer I got to him, the more I realised it was something far more serious.”
Hinnnat scooped up his son into his arms, “And I screamed, ‘Somebody help me, please, help me save my son. God, save my son, please.’” The tragedy was reportedly witnessed by his older sisters, as well as neighbour Dorian Labrant.
The suspect, Darius Sessoms, was seen frantically pacing around outside, gun in hand, while Cannon’s father was left clutching onto his son. He was instantly enraged, as he saw his son’s murderer only a few paces away from him. Hinnant told reporters that he couldn’t do anything about it because he needed to stay by his son’s side.
Sessoms fled to a Goldsboro residence, about thirty minutes away from the south of Wilson, in a 2019 Toyota Corolla. Here, he was arrested by the U.S. Marshals Service Carolinas Regional Task Force. He was charged with first degree murder by the North Carolina authorities, and is being held with no bond. It is unclear whether Sessoms has an attorney or not. Local authorities gave little detail of the incident to reporters, and no motive has been released.
Darius Sessoms, who is the alleged killer of Cannon Hinnant, spent two short stints in prison for other convictions in 2017. Sessoms has also been charged with felonies including drug possession, while the other felony relates to firearm and drug charges. Newspaper Raleigh News & Observer also reported that Sessoms has previously been charged three separate times for drug possession. He was convicted in the first case, the second was dismissed, and the third charge is still pending. Hinnant said, “I have no idea why he would kill my son.”
Some people believe that major news outlets, such as ABC News, CBS News and the New York Times failed to report Cannon's death as a breaking story. Many pushed the claim that the story was, on the whole, being ignored due to race. However, it isn’t true to say that all major news stations avoided publishing articles about his death. By the 14th of August, it was inaccurate to claim that CNN, The Associated Press, Yahoo! News, NBC News, and ABC News had ignored the tragedy. There is also no substantiating evidence to suggest that the media was disguising his death through publishing less relevant stories. It is true to say that Sessoms is Black and Cannon was white, but it is false to claim that the media was trying to hide his death to suit a racial narrative.
The tragedy has stirred outrage on social media, as ‘#SayHisName’ trends on Twitter. News websites such as TheBlaze claimed there was a social media blackout in the wake of Cannon’s death, in protest of the attitudes towards race. Some argued the media could have been trying to hide his death due to the current political climate. Journalist Cassandra Fairanks tweeted: “Just so everyone understands: a lone woman calling the police on a stranger threatening her/her dog in a park is considered national news. The murder of #CannonHinnant is not.”
Dismissing such allegations Hinnan was disturbed by the claims that the death of his son could have been motivated by race at all, but greatly appreciated the support. The police have given no suggestion that race was a contributing factor in the crime. A GoFundMe page titled ‘Justice for Cannon’ was set up by his family, and has already received donations of more than $400,000, His father did stress that “This is no racial issue.” and said he prayed for people behind those posts who believed it was.
Cannon's family held his funeral last Thursday, on the 13th of August, and Cannon was laid to rest. There are plans for a commemorative cycle through his old town and a vigil too in his memory. People are even wearing crocs, as Cannon was obsessed with his own camouflage pair. The event is set to be called ‘#CroccinForCannon’.